Custom Active Physical Science Curriculum
Create a customized Active Physical Science course with units from our popular Active Chemistry, Active Physics, and EarthComm programs to support the unique needs of your high school physical science program.
Available as a package or for individual purchase
Digital
On the Activate Learning Digital Platform
Kits
Materials & Supplies
Professional Learning
Three-Dimensional
Project-Based Approach
Students conduct investigations and engage in the Engineering Design Cycle as they iteratively work towards completing the Chapter Challenge.
Students Learn Like Scientists and Engineers
Students develop important
21st-Century skills as they work collaboratively in groups and engage in scientific discourse.
Total Support
for Teachers
Professional Learning is provided by our team of education specialists.
Need more info to decide if this the right curriculum for your district or school?
Active Physical Science Curriculum Details
Active Physical Science content is based on the research on how students learn, encapsulated in the 7E Instructional Model (Elicit, Engage, Explore, Explain, Elaborate, Extend, Evaluate).
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Chapter Challenges
Interesting and meaningful Chapter Challenges motivate students to learn and remember the science content.
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Crosscutting Concepts
Science and engineering practices, crosscutting concepts, and core ideas are seamlessly integrated throughout the Active Physical Science curriculum.
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Customizable Content
Follow the unit sequence listed below, or select the chapters you'd like to create your custom physical science course, available in print chapter books and interactive digital units.
Active Physical Science Research-Based Design
Active Physical Science is research-based.
Active Physical Science content was supported through National Science Foundation funding and consequently produced through rigorous, iterative, research-based development cycles. It is based on the latest research from the cognitive sciences on how students learn.
Active Physical Science students develop communication and collaboration skills.
Students develop a community of practice and a culture of collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, and communication.
The presentations of the Chapter Challenges provide students with opportunities to engage in scientific arguments using evidence and science knowledge and promote a deeper understanding through public practice.
Active Physical Science fits your unique needs.
The content is customizable and reflects the full scope of physical science content standards for high school—those identified as the Disciplinary Core Ideas in A Framework for K-12 Science Education and those of individual states and districts.
Active Physical Science Scope & Sequence
To the right is an example unit sequence, however, units can be adapted to fit your state's unique sequence.
Contact us for help customizing your physical science content to best match your standards.
Chapter Challenge: Students demonstrate their knowledge of the physics of driving by making a presentation to a board of driving instructors.
Through a series of activities, students learn about average and instantaneous speed and then connect information about reaction time, speed, and velocity to tailgating. They explore acceleration, positive and negative, in the context of the time required to bring a vehicle to a stop and decision-making at a yellow light.
They also learn about centripetal force and acceleration and relate it to driving on curves.
Chapter Challenge: Students design a safety system to protect passengers during a collision.
Students use Newton’s first law to describe what happens during a collision and apply the concept of pressure to the design of a seatbelt. They observe the effect of spreading a force over a greater distance and explain their observations using the work-energy theorem. After exploring the effects of a rear-end collision, they use Newton’s laws to describe how whiplash occurs.
Students investigate the law of conservation of momentum by analyzing collisions. They measure velocity and force on a vehicle during impact and describe the relationship between impulse and momentum.
Chapter Challenge: Students modify the design of a roller coaster to meet the needs of a specific group of riders.
Students use gravitational and potential energy to explain their observations of a ball rolling down an incline and a swinging pendulum. They investigate spring potential energy and explore the law of conservation of energy. They determine the relationship between gravitational force and distance. Students learn about the difference between mass and weight, and determine Hooke’s law and calculate spring potential energy. Newton’s second law for net forces is used to analyze a free-body diagram for objects undergoing acceleration. Students investigate centripetal force and apply it to a roller coaster. They pull a mass up different routes to a fixed height and develop a definition of work and its relationship to power.
Students develop concept maps on force and energy and explore examples of each on a roller coaster.
Chapter Challenge: Students design an appliance package for a family home that is powered by a wind-driven generator.
Students explore current, voltage, and resistance in parallel and series circuits. They create a simple fuse and calculate load limits of a household circuit. Students investigate heat transfer and learn about the laws of thermodynamics and entropy. They calculate the efficiency of various water heaters and apply this to designing their appliance package.
Chapter Challenge: Students develop a game to learn about and use the periodic table.
Students study the physical and chemical properties of elements and use the information to categorize elements as metals and nonmetals. They then learn about atoms, atomic mass, the law of definite proportions, and they discover how the model of an atom has changed over time. Students observe the spectra of several elements and learn about ionization potentials.
Next, the students learn about the noble gases and discover the octet rule. Finally, students examine how the average atomic mass of an element is determined, the factors that affect nuclear stability, and the difference between fission and fusion.
Chapter Challenge: Students create a toy that uses various chemical and/or gas principles.
Students use the metal-activity series to construct electrochemical cells and explore the nanoscopic concepts of redox reactions. They use models to connect the size and shape of a molecule to its properties. They learn about Boyle’s law by examining volume changes with pressure changes in a syringe and changes in buoyancy with pressure changes.
They explore Charles’s law in the context of hot-air balloons and generate and test hydrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. using the knowledge they have gained, students determine the volume of one mole of oxygen gas and calculate the gas-law constant. Then they learn about Graham’s law by observing the effusion of hydrogen and carbon dioxide.
Chapter Challenge: Students develop a demonstration of chemistry concepts for a grade-school audience.
Students observe the characteristics of a chemical reaction and use indicators to identify acids and bases. They examine single- and double-replacement reactions and practice writing chemical equations. Students observe endothermic and exothermic reactions and factors that affect reaction rates. They explore the properties of acids and bases and the activity of metals.
Digital Platform
The Activate Learning Digital Platform (ALDP) hosts the interactive digital edition of the Active Physical Science teacher and student curriculum materials.
The platform is designed for student accessibility and inclusion and offers embedded translation for over 130 languages and text-to-speech with read-along highlighting in 35 languages.
Featuring an intuitive user experience, teachers have everything they need to Plan, Teach, Assign, and Assess lessons in a platform that is integrated with leading SIS rostering and Learning Management Systems such as Google Classroom, Schoology, and Canvas.
About The Author
Dr. Arthur Eisenkraft has taught high school physics for over 28 years. He is currently the Distinguished Professor of Science Education, Professor of Physics and Founding Director of the Center of Science and Math in Context (COSMIC) at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Dr. Arthur Eisenkraft has taught high school physics for over 28 years. He is currently the Distinguished Professor of Science Education, Professor of Physics and Founding Director of the Center of Science and Math in Context (COSMIC) at the University of Massachusetts Boston.
Dr. Eisenkraft is the author of numerous science and educational publications and holds a patent for a Laser Vision testing system, which tests visual acuity for spatial frequency.
Dr. Eisenkraft has been recognized with numerous awards for his teaching, scholarship and service including: the National Science Board Public Service Award, 2017; the NSTA’s most prestigious award, the Robert H. Carleton Award for “making outstanding contributions to and providing leadership in science education at the national level,” 2010; the American Association of Physics Teachers (AAPT) Robert A. Millikan Medal for “notable and creative contributions in physics education,” 2009; Honorary Doctorate of Science, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute, 1993; Disney American Teacher Award for Science Teacher of the Year, 1991; the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science Teaching from President Ronald Reagan, 1986.
In 1999, Dr, Eisenkraft was elected to a three-year cycle as the President Elect, President, and Retiring President of the NSTA, the world’s largest organization of science teachers. He has served on numerous committees of the National Academy of Science, including the content committee that has helped author the National Science Education Standards and the Framework for K-2 Science Education, and in 2003 he was elected a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). Dr. Eisenkraft has been involved with several projects and chaired many notable competitions, including the Toshiba/NSTA ExploraVisions Awards (1991 to present), which he co-created; the Toyota TAPESTRY Grants (1990 to 2005); and the Duracell/NSTA Scholarship Competition (1984 to 2000). In 1993, he served as Executive Director for the XXIV International Physics Olympiad after being Academic Director for the United States team for six years.
Dr. Eisenkraft’s presently leads the Wipro Science Education Fellowship program which is bringing sustainable change to over 35 school districts across seven states. He has recently been supporting novel educational initiatives in Thailand and India. His current research projects include a study of professional development choices that teachers make when facing a large-scale curriculum change, assessing the technological literacy of K-12 students and investigating how teachers can become leaders without leaving the classroom. Dr. Eisenkraft is a frequent presenter and keynote speaker. He has published over 100 articles and presented over 200 papers and workshops. Quantoons, written with L. Kirkpatrick and featuring illustrations by Tomas Bunk, led to an art exhibition at the New York Hall of Science.
Dr. Eisenkraft has been featured in articles in The New York Times, Education week, Physics Today, Scientific American, Science, the American Journal of Physics, and The Physics Teacher. He has testified before the United States Congress, appeared on NBC's The Today Show, National Public Radio, and many other radio and television broadcasts, including serving as the science consultant to ESPN’s Sports Figures.
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